CLOSED BY ORDER

Hokitika Guardian, 25 May 1926, Page 4

CLOSED BY ORDER

A PRIVATE HOSPITAL. LICENSEE CHARGED. AUCKLAND, May 22. Five charges of breaches in relation to maternity cases were preferred against Mrs E. J. Fullerton-Whyte, licensee of tho Willesden Private Hospital, in the Police Court before Mr J. W. Hunt, S.M. Mr Patterson appeared for the Health Department. i Defendant was charged that having attended a case of notifiable sepsis she visited another maternity patient without obtaining the sanction, of the Tidalth Officers. She was also charged that as licensee of a maternity hospital she permitted a patient, Airs Leonora Hamilton, to occupy a room with another patient exhibiting signs of morbidity, and that as licensee she permitted Airs Hamilton to use equipment .which had not been disinfected. The remaining charges were that on two occasions temperature charts were not kept. HOSPITAL closed. Dr J. 11. Crawsliaw, Aledical Officer of Health at Dunedin, gave evidence that in October last he whs in Auckland. and on October 211th, in consequence of notification received, be visited Willesden Hospital. He found that Airs Strong was going to the public hospital, as her medical adviser considered she had sepsis. In the r-r.ine room as Arrs Strong there were (wo other piiticnts, Airs Edwards and Airs Hamilton. Witness insisted that Airs Edwards should also go to the hospital; There were five other eases in the hospital, and he communicated with their respective doctors to see whether they would allow their patients to proceed home. All left Willesden Hospital. Witness ordered the hospital to be closed for five days, and instructed Sister Connie Whyte (who was in charge) and also Nurse Charles worth not to attend any other cases for a similar period. There was no excuse for a nurse failing to record a temperature of ever ■ ICO degrees. |

Mr Moody: If a doctor attended one of those pi tic i its and took a temperature of 102, and did not order her immediate isolation, would you say ho was careless?—That is not quite fair to ask me to criticise another medical man .

Do you know that Airs Fullerton Whyte rang up the various doctors ’and asked them to remove their patients I No. CONFLICTING STATEMENTS. Dr Toni Lukin Paget, Inspector ol Hospitals for the Department of Health, said that, with Dr Crawsliaw, he inspected Willesden on October 21st.. At that time the hospital was closed mid was being disinfected. Ho took charge of the charts. He would say that the general character of the temperature charts was not accurate. There was a characteristic about the charts which indicated an inaccurate record. Witness asked Nurse Charlesworth. if she was present at the confinements of' Mrs Strong and Airs Edwards, and sho | replied that she was. Later, at Fencourt, ho saw Airs Fullerton Wliyte, and asked the defendant who was pre- j sent lat the two confinements, and she . said that Nurse Charlesworth. was. He [ asked defendant if she had been at ! AVillesdon since the outbreak of sepsis. , The object of these questions was to make sure that .Mrs Fullerton Wliyte would not carry infection from Willesdon to Fcncourt. However, lie found that defendant bad not tuld him the ' truth about this. As a result Fancourt was ordered to be closed in October 23rd. Subsequently with Dr H. Pettitt, he saw defendant at Fencourt, when he charged Airs Fullerton j Whyte with deceiving him by not i telling Liiy that she was present at the confinements of Airs Edwards and Ah's Strong, and with leaving stated un- j truthfully that she had not been at • Willesden since tho outbreak of sepsis, i Defendant then replied that witness had never asked her. Witness pointed out. that defendant knew that under the regulations she Ibid no right to continue nursing patients after <•:>

j Rosing herself to infection by alicndiug the two patients, j TAKING PRECAUTIONS. ' Ah- Hunt: Did any of the Fencourt patients develop sepsis?—No. On representations made by Dr Pettitt, wLo bad patients waiting to enter, witness agreed to allow Fencourt to be open, after imposing most strigent restrictions. Witness said lie regretted lie could not trust Airs Fullerton Whyte, and asked Dr Pettitt to undertake all precautions and notify the Department of any high temperatures. This the doctor undertook to do, and witness allowed the hospital to reopen with, an entirely new staff, and only after it had been thoroughly disinfected. Once a patient was septic, this always could be found to have commenced immediately after the rise of temperature. Afr Moody: You heard Dr Hart say that Airs Strong was confined on October 17tli, 'and that the. following day she was quite well?—Yes. ALr Moody: Look at this chart of Airs Gumlcy’s. Is this specific chart vI at w« might vulgarly call faked?—l won’t express an opinion about any individual chart. The case was adjourned until Thursday next.